Perhaps a sign of worsening economic conditions in Spain, Renault is giving away a free Twizy electric car for every Laguna, Latitude or Espace model purchased. The offer from Renault is a drastic attempt to move vehicles out of the dealer lots, after new vehicle sales in Spain fell to a 19-year low in the first half of 2012.

Both the Laguna and the Espace are unpopular models for the French automaker and this could be the reason why they have been removed from the UK dealership in February. Priced from 6990 euros, the Spanish-built Twizy could be a slow-selling model as well and hence the bundled deal.

The Twizy measures 2,320mm long, 1,191mm wide and 1,461mm tall. It is powered by a 20bhp electric motor generating 57Nm of torque and weighs 450kg including the battery pack. It has a maximum driving range of 100km and takes three hours to charge using a 220V 10A outlet.

The car has a maximum speed of 45km/h and can thus be driven in most European countries by drivers from 16 years old without a driving license. If the car is driven at maximum speed, it means that the car has to stop and get charged up after 2.2 hours. Given that a full charge takes three hours, I guess it does not sound very inviting to own one.

I have been a car fanatic since 1989, when my father was changing our family car then to a Toyota Corolla 1.6 GL fitted with a Twin Cam 16 valve engine that was carburetor-fed, a big deal back in those days. The automobile technology and industry fascinates me and I hope to broadcast these interesting developments to everyone out there through this blog.